The Lennox High School volleyball team, led by head coach Vanessa Gabel, experienced a rollercoaster of emotions this past week as they faced off against two formidable opponents.
Their performance against Mount Vernon-Plankinton on Tuesday, Sept. 19, left them disappointed with a 0-3 loss (16-25, 18-25, 16-25). However, the team showed remarkable resilience and determination when they took on West Central on Thursday, Sept. 21, and secured a convincing 3-0 victory (25-15, 25-23, 25-18).
“This week was a tale of two teams. We played well below our potential on Tuesday, away, against MVP. The girls roared back with our home game against West Central,” said Gabel.
Against MVP, Libby Kranz led the team in kills with six in the game. Dani Highum had five kills and three aces. Carli Kuyper finished with five kills and Ashlee Sweeter had 11 digs. Ella Grengs provided 13 set assists.
Thursday night brought a much-needed turnaround for the Orioles.
Kranz led the charge with 12 kills. Highum contributed significantly with 11 kills and an impressive 12 digs. Grengs demonstrated her versatility with 10 kills, 22 assists, and two aces, while Lilly Meyer contributed 21 assists to ensure a well-coordinated offense.
Defensively, Sweeter recorded 11 digs, and Addison Martz, Ryan Hanssen, and Kuyper each had two blocks.
Coach Gabel praised her team’s performance, saying, “The team came out swinging and never stopped. We had an extremely well-rounded offensive attack. We had players coming from all sides of the net to keep West Central on their heels as the match progressed. Libby Kranz led the team in kills, followed closely by Dani Highum who was putting some dents in the floor with her swings. Ella and Lilly put up a lot of quality sets for our attackers to have lots of options.”